Balance of the Force Made Flesh
by WizMonCruWil
Summary: "Kira now stepped closer to Finn, eyes suddenly very nervous. "Hi... we've never met before. You were best friends with my mom, Rey. Rey Skywalker? My name is Kira... I'm your goddaughter."" This is set ten, eleven years after TROS. How will Finn react when the child of his best friend, sired by a man he hates, shows up on his doorstep? Partially inspired by The Game Plan.
1. Chapter 1: Hi, We've Never Met Before

**Chapter 1: Hi, We've Never Met Before**

Rey stood with her lightsaber ignited, glaring at Kylo Ren from across the ruins of the Death Star ruins. He was holding the Wayfinder that she had found clutched in his fist.

"Give it to me," Rey hissed with rage. Against her better judgement, her traitorous body was demanding more than just the ancient Sith object.

Something even darker than anger passed over Kylo's eyes just then. Snarling predatorily, he crushed the Wayfinder in his fist, then proceeded to advance on the beautiful Jedi.

Snarling, Rey raised the blue blade of Anakin Skywalker over her head. Kylo raised his hand...

... and the lightsaber was cast aside by the Force as easily as if it were a toy.

Without a weapon, Rey was left to try and hold him off with her bare hands. However, in one sweeping motion, Kylo had seized her wrists and yanked them over her head. Tugging Rey's body flushed against his toned one, he swooped in and kissed her full on the mouth.

Rey's eyes popped wide and she let out an indignant squeal into his mouth. Kylo's mouth just continued to slant over hers and the squeal soon softened into a confused whimper.

And then... that whimper gave way to a plaintive _moan_, as Rey felt her eyelids grow heavy before they fluttered shut completely. Twitching her mouth into his, parting her lips wide to grant his tongue entrance, she became a willing participant in her own seduction.

"Mmmmmhmmmmmm..." Feeling Kylo release her wrists, Rey chose to loop her arms about his neck and lean into the kiss, deepening it. And as his lips made hers become swollen with how completely they were fused together in this lip lock, Rey realized it was Ben, not Kylo who was kissing her. The anger had faded, the passion had morphed into something more... productive and a tenderness had now reared its head.

The Force Bond, the Dyad, exulted like a choir of angels. Seizing her thighs, Ben hoisted Rey off her feet and she folded her legs lovingly about his torso. He carried her grandly to the ruins of the Emperor's throne before casting her down on the seat. Pulling him into her lap, Rey spread her legs wide, her thighs nearly extended as far as they would go. Rey and Ben's lips were nearly swallowing each other whole, their tongues engaged in an intricate dance. Rey felt her white trousers rolled down past her knees, down her calves to her ankles. Her very wet femininity was exposed to the cool sea breeze of Kef Bir, the draft tickling her slick and wet folds. She gasped into Ben's plundering mouth as she felt a bloated, wild thing line up at her entrance.

The lovers' thoughts raced back and forth across the Bond.

_Is this all right?_ Rey fought the urge to chuckle. Ben Solo was quite the gentleman.

_Gods, yes_.

And then Ben plunged into Rey's sex, breaching her maidenhead. The sharp pinch of pain made tears prick at Rey's eyes, and she gulped to get air as Ben wrenched out of the lip lock to kiss her tears away. Slowly, he began to rock in and out, in and out, Rey arching her back against him and making sounds that no woman could make unless they were in the throes of passion.

"Uhhh... Huhhh... Mmmm... Hmmmm... Ben..."

"Mom?... Mom! Mom, are you OK? Mom, wake up!"

A blinding flash of sunlight suddenly invaded the Death Star ruins and Rey Skywalker was yanked without warning back into the conscious world. Blinking her eyes against the sudden brightness, Rey sat up sharply in bed, gasping.

She was in her stone hut on Ahch-To, the flimsy curtain having been tugged away from the carved opening in the rock. She chose to ignore how her black pajama bottoms were now nearly soaked through with juices induced by that amazing wet dream. How she wished that she and Ben had been together like that! And sitting on the foot of her bed was the miracle produced by Rey and Ben being together in a way that only the Force could understand - a miracle conjured by his soft hand on her belly instead of his manliness squirming and thrusting inside of her.

Kira Skywalker Solo sat back, grinning adorably, allowing Rey to take in her ten-year-old daughter. Her daughter by Ben.

Their little girl had a heart-shaped face, dark brown eyes, and dirty blonde hair - the latter of which shone like spun gold in the sunlight, and when it was clean (Rey noted how her baby needed a bath to rid the dirt and grime from the island out of her tresses). The Jedi had not been able to account for Kira's blond hair at first - Rey's own locks were chestnut, while Ben's had been the most silky black. But then, Artoo had shown Rey holo footage of Luke Skywalker as a young man - the legendary Jedi Master had been sinfully handsome and with blonde strands of his own in his youth. Perhaps it was natural that some traits were passed down to his great-niece, now still staring at her mother adorably.

"So, Mom, now that you're up, I was thinking we should go down to the cliffs and feed the thala-sirens - Oh, and then we could try and catch some Porgs - and then, we could do some lightsaber sparring and braid each other's hair as a cool-down!" Kira was prattling on. Rey felt her lips tug up in amusement at the bubbling way her daughter spoke - she certainly didn't get _that_ from Ben.

Then Rey turned to glance at the chrono perched on the stone windowsill, and her jaw dropped.

"It's 0600 in the morning!" She flashed the digital readout in Kira's face. "It's 0600 on Saturday morning!"

"Up, please!" Kira chirpily whined.

"Kira... my heart:" Rey sighed, taking her hand. "It is Saturday, the day of rest."

"Sunday's the day of rest," Kira corrected.

"No, Saturday's the day of pre-rest."

"Pre-rest?"

"Yes, so that on Sunday, you're rested enough to enjoy your rest."

Kira eyed her mother with deep amusement. "That makes absolutely no sense."

Just then, there was a deep, sonic whoozhing sound - more than a thunder clap in timbre. Rey's eyes snapped to the ceiling of their hut, flashing. "Something's just entered our airspace."

R2D2 came shrieking in just then, beeping and bopping distressingly.

"Carrier warship? With an old First Order insignia?" Rey's heart dropped. Leaping out of bed, she grabbed her baby's hand. "Kira, come on."

Mother and daughter and droid raced out of the stone hut to see a cruiser coming in low and fast over the sea. It was banking, turning back around to make a run at the island proper. The turret guns came into view as the cruiser came in screaming closer.

PING! PING! PING!

"Get down!" Rey yelled, tackling Kira to the earth as huts around them were obliterated, bits of rock raining down as mother shielded child with her own body.

Kick-jumping to her feet, Rey reached out with the Force and her double-bladed lightsaber staff slapped into her waiting palm. Igniting the golden blades, she deflected them with a ferocious intensity, the mama-bear snarl not leaving her face.

The cruiser was coming in for a landing on the platform at the base of the island mountain. From above, Rey saw the ramp lower and a platoon of white Stormtroopers disembark.

How could this be? The First Order was no more, or so Rey knew. Perhaps this was one legion that had managed to get away and lay low in hiding, after Exogol? The galaxy was at peace, with a democratic government led by Poe Dameron and Finn...

Poe and Finn... Sprinting back into her hut, Rey flung herself at her meager nightstand and began yanking out drawers, flinging lingerie and other clothing this way and that. Where had she put it...?

"Mom?" In the doorway, Kira was whimpering, glancing back to the stone steps leading down the island, where the troopers would appear any moment.

At the bottom of the last drawer, Rey's hands closed on the piece of parchment. A-ha! Racing back to her daughter, she slapped the envelope into Kira's hand.

"Hang onto that! And follow me!"

Seizing a rucksack and casting it over her daughter's shoulder, the pair raced down from the hut village and skirted along the cliffs, coming upon the grassy knoll where the charred remains of a TIE fighter still sat. That ship had been marooned on the island for as long as Kira could remember; she had played sometimes in its cockpit, with her mother always watching close by.

Wrenching open the circular door, Rey beckoned for Artoo to wheel in. Then, lifting her daughter up, Rey placed her gingerly into the cockpit seat. Seizing her wrist, she shook the envelope in Kira's face.

"You take this... to Chandrila! Find Uncle Poe and Uncle Finn and give this to them! Say that you're mine and you shouldn't have a bit of trouble!"

Kira gaped at her mother, wide-eyed. She had heard countless stories about her uncles - the dashing pilot, Poe Dameron. And the ex-Stormtrooper Finn, her godfather and her mommy's best friend. "But... but, Mama... Chandrila..."

"... is the safest place in the galaxy; your father was born there."

"- this thing can't even fly! -"

"Yes, it can - I hope..."

"How do I even get to Chandrila?"

"I'll plug in the coordinates." Reaching around Kira, Rey's hands shook as she managed to plug in the path to Chandrila. It was in the Core Worlds, clear across the galaxy from here in the Unknown Regions.

In the slight distance, the girls could hear the automated voices of troopers coming closer. Rey could sense through the Force: they were almost to the top of the stone steps...

Cupping Kira's face in her hands, Rey leaned in and fiercely kissed her lips, her cheeks, her face. Tears slipped from her eyes. "No matter what happens - I love you! Listen to your uncles; Poe and Finny should know what to do! If all goes well, I shall find a way off-planet and come find you!"

Kira was practically shaking with terror. "I won't leave without you!"

"You have to," Rey stated grimly. It was too late; they were out of time. "You are my greatest treasure, precious one. I will always thank the Force that you are mine, that I carried you inside me. I love you so much, my Kira!" Closing the hatch, Rey concentrated only on the Force. All those years ago, the TIE fighter had been burned to a certain degree, but hopefully not enough that it could no longer get off the ground.

With the help of the Force, Rey heard the creaking and groaning as the bucket of bolts lifted into the air. Higher and higher it rose, and then there was a flurry of beeps as the ship's systems came to life.

"You there, Jedi! HALT!" The Stormtroopers were nearly on top of Rey.

Opening her eyes, Rey gritted her teeth. "GO!" Using all of the Force that she had, she launched the TIE into space, out of Ahch-To's atmosphere. She felt her daughter's signature kiss her goodbye through the Force and take control of the ship, piloting it far away.

Up in the TIE fighter, Kira watched in horror as her mother spun around and ignited her golden lightsaber, attacking the troopers. Out of Ahch-To's atmosphere she rocketed, into deep space, before she suddenly felt her mother's presence in the Force disappear.

Kira nearly crumpled in the cockpit. "MOMMY!"

* * *

Far away, on Chandrila, General Finn Calrissian was overseeing progress on a new construction project on the outskirts of the Galactic Capital. Seeing a landspeeder coming in hard over the newly paved roads, he turned with a smile as Supreme Allied Commander Poe Dameron leapt out of the pilot's seat with a dashing smile. He carried a canteen in his left hand.

"You look like you could use a drink, buddy!" the former Resistance pilot laughed.

Smiling good-naturedly, Finn accepted the drink, taking a sip.

"So, how's Jannah?"

"Pregnant, and at least this morning, irritable about it," Finn smiled as he thought of his wife, the daughter of the great Lando Calrissian. Having no surname of his own, he had happily agreed to take her name when they married six years ago.

Poe barked out a laugh. "I can see why Zorri is categorically opposed to motherhood, then."

"But you're going to try and convince her that you should knock her up anyway," Finn smirked cheekily. Poe had expressed to him in long venting sessions how his bounty hunting wife refused to get pregnant, even though Poe desperately wanted children. But Zorri Bliss Dameron was far too stubborn.

"Yup," Poe sighed. "I don't see why she is so afraid. She would look so beautiful carrying my kid..."

"All right, all right, get that dopey grin off your face..."

"GENERAL!" A field foreman barked. "Our scanners are picking up a ship coming in hard and fast towards the building site! Looks like a TIE fighter!"

Finn's brow furrowed. "A TIE? That's not possible - mass production on all TIEs has been discontinued..."

Poe shrugged. "A relic, maybe?"

The field foreman rushed to Finn's side with a data pad. "Sir: request permission to shoot it down?"

Finn opened his mouth to reply, but then the Force nudged him. Something was coming... something important... "No. Permission denied. It should crash-land on its own."

"In the middle of our construction site?!" The foreman looked horrified.

"Trust me, and in the Force, Foreman," Finn advised.

Above their heads, the shriek of the TIE could be heard as it barreled in for a crash-landing. Almost serendipitously, the ship screeched and scraped to a halt in the middle of the digging pit.

Security soldiers rushed forward to surround the TIE, Poe and Finn hot on their heels. Dameron was observing the whole scene curiously, wondering what this was about.

Taking an intercom off the foreman, Finn barked into it: "This is General Finn Calrissian! We have you surrounded! Come out with your hands up!"

For a moment, there was silence. Then, a hydraulic whoosh as the circular hatch popped open. Through the mist, a tiny figure emerged, hands reaching for the sky, and when the mist dissipated...

Poe blinked. "It's just a little girl!"

"What's a little runt doing piloting a TIE? And in that condition - the thing looks like it's about to come apart!" The foreman shook his head.

Finn, however, was silent as his gaze locked with the girl. She was staring at him intensely. As if she knew him...

Quietly, Finn approached. "Don't be afraid, we're not gonna hurt you."

The girl nodded. "I know. She told me that."

"Who's _she_?" Finn frowned. "Your mother? Where is she?"

"On our home planet," Kira whimpered adorably.

"Well, what about your father?"

Kira's face fell. "He's... dead..."

Poe scoffed. "That's convenient."

"Poe, hush."

"But my guardian's here!" Kira chirped.

"Well, you'd better go find him, cause he's probably looking for you," Finn admonished.

Kira shook her head. "He's not looking for me."

Finn huffed exasperatedly. "How do you know?"

"Because... he's looking _at_ me."

Now, Finn was completely baffled. "What...?"

Kira now stepped closer to Finn, eyes suddenly very nervous. "Hi... we've never met before. You were best friends with my mom, Rey. Rey Skywalker? My name is Kira... I'm your goddaughter."


	2. Chapter 2: She Wrote You a Note

**Chapter 2: She Wrote You a Note**

Finn had been unable to take his eyes off of Kira since the crash landing at the construction site.

He was still staring at her, now seated across from him on a couch in his spacious apartment in one of the finest high-rises on Chandrila. One forearm leaning on his knees, Finn bounced that same leg nervously as he studied this wisp of a girl before him the way he would study a fine Coruscanti painting.

She certainly looked like she _could_ resemble Rey, if only slightly. There was something about those eyes that peered at him... The shape of the little girl's face definitely wasn't his favorite Jedi's, but still familiar in an entirely different, far more unsettling way. Finn just couldn't remember where he had seen a face like that...

Beside him, Poe was glancing between Finn and Kira, obviously not sure what to think, and waiting for his best friend to reach a conclusion so that he could pass judgement. The appearance of R2D2 - a droid they hadn't seen in years - emerging from the TIE wreckage certainly threw a disturbing wrench into this story, but...

"No..." Finn finally laughed, shaking his head. "No. No - time out: the Rey that I knew would _never_ have a kid." Truth were known, when Rey hadn't come back to Ajan Kloss following a brief layover on return from Tatooine, and cut off all communication, Poe and Finn had eventually had to assume that she was dead. Much of their grieving had been navigated long ago, but still the sadness pulled. Just as the Force did, had always given Finn the slightest suspicion that maybe Rey was alive somewhere...

Calmly, Kira stood from the couch and crossed to the two men. Procuring an envelope from her rucksack, she handed it to the darker man.

"She wrote you a note."

"Wrote me a note!" Finn laughingly scoffed, snatching it from her hand and turning it over in his fingers. He didn't move to open it, not yet, as Kira wandered about, taking the scenery in. Finn hoped she would be quiet; Jannah was upstairs, asleep, needing her beauty rest for the sake of the baby.

"You have the best view in the whole galaxy..." Kira marveled, taking in the skyline through windows that stretched from floor to ceiling.

"You really expect me to believe you're my best friend's kid based on _this_?" Finn turned his head in her direction. "_Anybody_ could've written this!"

Kira still remained placid and calm. "Oh, yeah - I've also got this..." And she handed him a larger manila envelope. "It's my birth certificate."

"B-birth certificate?" Finn stammered slightly. He quickly moved to open the seal this time, as Kira once again toddled away.

"Your name is on it!" she cast over her shoulder.

"My name is not on this..." Finn laughed, but then his voice trailed off as he got a closer look, Poe craning to see over his shoulder. Under the title GODFATHER was typed: "Finn Calrissian..."

The two men looked at each other, eyes wide. In seconds, Poe had his holo comlink dialing and held up to his ear. When the person on the other end answered, Poe clipped cryptically. "We've got a situation."

Five minutes later, Poe's reinforcement was prancing into the apartment, noting how her husband was white as a sheet. "Fix it," he quipped, standing aside.

"Oh!" Zorri started, yelping.

* * *

Moments later found Poe, Finn and Zorri all gathered around the Calrissians' kitchen island, hissing in low whispers while Kira innocently doodled on a holopad mere feet away.

"You never told me Jedi girl had a kid!" Zorri hissed.

"We never thought she did, or would! She was never involved with anyone that we knew of, she was on the Jedi path, which usually promotes celibacy, and - she never had a _baby_!" Poe wheezed.

Zorri breathed in deep through her nose. "OK, for the sake of argument, is there even the teeniest, tiniest possibility that this child could be hers? - Think. Hard!"

Poe reached back into his memory. "I don't know. She buried the lightsabers on Tatooine, at least that's what she said, the peace treaty was final. On Ajan Kloss, she came by... to pick up a few of her things, and..." His voice trailed off, as another memory from that last day surfaced - a detail he hadn't noticed before. A memory of Rey wearing some really weird outer clothing... on a planet that never saw temperatures dip anywhere below 60 degrees. "A black sweater..."

"What?" Zorri snapped.

"She was wearing a really baggy, black sweater that morning..." Of course, he was an idiot! Why hadn't he seen it before?

"Poe...?" Zorri got out warningly as her husband wandered back towards the fridge. "When did this _'Rey was wearing a really baggy, black sweater that morning'_ actually happen?"

"About ten or eleven years ago," Poe gritted out.

"How old are you, kid?" Zorri quipped in Kira's direction.

"Ten."

Zorri eyed her husband. "Congratulations, Poe."

"Uhh... this isn't _happening_ to me!" Poe blasted out, slapping the granite.

"Don't you mean me? I'm the godfather!" Finn squeaked.

"Only because Rey trusted me about as far as she could throw me, and that wasn't very far!" Poe pointed at Finn.

Zorri was now staring at Kira with something between curiosity and amusement. "And how did you get here again?"

"Stormtroopers were attacking our homeworld and then she put me in the TIE fighter," Kira recited, sounding almost bored. She turned back to Poe and Finn. "Mommy said that I would be safe with you two. I've always wanted to meet you - I'd ask Mommy, 'Why can't I go visit my uncles?' And she'd say, 'Well, baby, they don't know about you yet.' And then I'd say..."

"OK, OK, we get it!" Zorri cut her off. "Is there at least anyone else we can call who will take you in?"

Kira shook her head. "This is where the Force and Mommy wanted me to go."

Zorri cocked an eyebrow, skeptical. "And so the Force decided to magically drop you off at some man's house?"

"Not some man!" Kira gawked. "My godfather. According to the wishes of my mother."

"So _you_ say!" Zorri challenged.

"Want a maternity test?" Kira refused to back down.

"Actually, that's a great idea!" Finn jumped on it. "I'll call Beaumont and Maz and get them to come down here. They'll be able to trace the lineage of a Force sensitive."

Poe nodded, turning over the envelope containing Rey's note in his hand. "And what about this? Maybe the note inside is from Rey." He turned to his wife. "Zorri, can you dig into this Stormtrooper attack thing? Uncover any activity from former First Order troopers and track their movements."

"I'm on it, flyboy," Zorri nodded.

Grinning, Poe pulled Zorri to him and gave her a firm kiss on the lips. "Thanks, sweetie."

Zorri blushed, then ambled from the room.

Finn knelt in front of Kira. "Kira, honey, there's a spare room upstairs that you can sleep in if you want to take a nap. Be very quiet in the hallway - Auntie Jannah is sleeping."

Kira nodded. Then she shocked both men by hugging Finn before skipping up the stairs.

As soon as she was gone, Poe wagged the envelope in the air. "It's time we found out the truth."

Sitting side-by-side on the couch, Poe slowly opened the envelope. A folded piece of paper was inside, which Poe quickly unfolded. One look at the scrawl, and Finn's heart clenched when he recognized Rey's handwriting. Poe slowly began to read:

_Dear Finn and Poe, _

_I have written this letter a thousand times, but I could never find the right words. Ben Solo and I have a daughter. Her name is Kira. She is like me in so many ways: athletic, headstrong. _

_I'm so afraid you'll be angry with me and not want anything to do with her. I hope that you will accept her, although her great-grandfathers were the embodiment of true evil. Ben Solo, formerly Kylo Ren, was Vader's grandson... and I am the granddaughter of the Emperor. My father was Palpatine's son. Kira's daddy and I were connected by a Force Dyad, as precious as life itself. Our baby was placed inside me when Ben brought me back to life on Exogol._

_I know this is a lot to take in, and that you probably feel towards me both betrayal and anger. We had already known that the war's aftermath was compelling us to go our separate ways. I rationalized that I was doing the right thing in keeping her from you. You both were just starting out in your careers... a child would have been such a distraction..._

As they read, Poe and Finn's jaws collectively dropped, even as their eyes filled with tears. Clearing his throat, Poe rushed through to the end:

_I always told myself that if anything were to ever happen to me, I would send Kira to you boys and have her explain what she is to me. If I cannot make it, please look after her, for my sake. You were my first friends and family when I had none, and you are the only men, other than her father - may he rest in peace - whom I would trust with her. _

_I'll love you both forever. _

_Truly,_

_Rey Skywalker_

Finn huffed out a breath as he took the letter from Poe and folded it carefully. "She should have told us about all this stuff..."

"Yeah, well what about you and Jannah thrashing about like a couple of loth-cats all over the place right after we got back to Ajan Kloss? Shouldn't Rey have known about that?" Poe snapped. "She wasn't happy that you broke it off with Rosie after Crait."

"That's my business," Finn sniffed. "And anyway, that is not what is most important here."

"Then what is most important?" Poe scoffed.

Finn turned to gaze at him, eyes sad. "Families don't keep secrets from each other. And yet, for some reason, Rey felt that she needed to, so that's exactly what she did. Rey didn't trust us enough to confide in us about all this - that she was romantically involved with Kylo Ren. That she is Darth Sidious's granddaughter. That she was pregnant. And now her baby has fallen into our laps."

Poe nodded, heaving himself to his feet with a shuddering breath. "All the more reason to have Beaumont and Maz get here, then."


	3. Chapter 3: Balance of the Force Made Fle

**Chapter 3: Balance of the Force Made Flesh**

Beaumont Kin, the most scholarly authority on Jedi and Sith history in the present galaxy, tried to study Kira Skywalker Solo without looking like he was gawking at an Ewok in a space zoo. He first took a sample of her blood, if only to make final confirmation that she was the daughter of Ben Solo and Rey. Beside him, Maz Kanata was peering at Kira through her large goggles, a knowing smile on her face, as if the blood test was just getting the men to catch up with what she already knew. And it probably was. The Force sensitive alien was over a thousand years old.

Beaumont studied the blood results as they came back through a portable machine he had wheeled in. On the couch, Finn and Poe watched the whiskered man's every move grimly.

"Well?"

Beaumont turned at Poe's voice. "It's a girl!" he cracked. Finn buried his face in his hands. Poe's jaw dropped. Up until now, they had been slowly accepting what Kira had laid before them, but a lingering part of each man hadn't wanted to fully believe it. Beaumont and Maz appeared unfazed.

"If you live long enough, you see the same eyes in different people..." It was Maz's adage, her philosophy of life.

Beaumont was more tight-lipped as he beamed a holographic rendering of the most legendary family tree in the galaxy. The tree wound down on the right from one Sheev Palpatine, down to Rey... whose name was attached to Ben Solo's. Kira Skywalker Solo's name rested below them both. Above Ben, his name wound up through Han Solo and Leia Organa, sidewinded by Luke Skywalker and up to Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala. The name Shmi Skywalker topped off the tree, a level above Anakin and Palpatine.

"Kira is more than just the great-grandchild of the two most notorious Sith Lords of all time, who ran the most authoritative regime this galaxy's ever seen," Beaumont intoned with dramatic gravitas (Poe rolled his eyes at the theatrics). "She is the direct product of what is known as a Force Dyad - a profound phenomenon seen maybe once each millennia, if that. Not much is known about Dyads, but what is known is that they typically grow out of a Force Bond - an extremely rare occurrence in Force sensitive nature in and of itself. Most Force Bonds that have been recorded throughout galactic history describe the pair bonded as being able to see, speak and sometimes even touch each other across lightyears."

He went on: "A Force Dyad is viewed as sacred - precious as life itself. Two that are one. Essentially, the Force takes two of its users and marries them, makes them man and wife." Beaumont ignored how Finn noticeably stiffened at this.

Poe cleared his throat. "And do these Force... marriages... always produce a child?"

"Oh, yes. Generally speaking," Beaumont quipped. "Before Ben and Rey, the last known Force Dyad case was in the Old Republic era, between Jedi Knight Bastila Shan and Darth Revan - Dark Lord of the Sith. They, of course, married and had children - at least three, that we know of."

Poe ran a hand over his face. "Fuck."

"Now, wait just a power-converting minute!" Finn snapped up a finger. "Is it always the case, in every Force Dyad or Bond or what have you, for there to be one... parent who serves the Light and the other who serves the Dark?"

"That has been the most common trend, yes," Beaumont affirmed. "But even in this, Ben and Rey are very special. Rey Skywalker, neé Palpatine, was born in the Dark, but served the Light. Ben Solo was born in the Light, yet served the Dark. Through their union, their offspring, they have fulfilled an ancient Jedi prophecy and created the perfect Force user - the Balance of the Force Made Flesh."

"The Balance of the Force Made Flesh," Poe echoed. "And Maz and Finn have to train her..."

"Not necessarily, General," Beaumont chided. "The girl very well could have had lessons from her mother. And Rey may yet arrive."

"How? We don't even know if Rey is alive or dead!" Poe huffed. He turned to his friends. "Can any of you feel her?"

Finn shook his head. Kira followed. Maz also expressed denial, though her expression was far more mysterious.

"A lack of presence in the Force does not always mean death..."

Poe breathed long and low, trying not to let Maz's words bolster him up with false hope. He stood, dusting his hands on his pants. "Well, I have a meeting tonight. Black tie function. Need to head back over to my place to get ready..."

"Wait - what about her?" Finn jerked his head towards Kira.

"Have her stay here with you. She'll be quiet while Jannah's asleep, if that's what you're worried about."

"I can't leave her here; I have a strategy meeting in the Situation Room across town. Mon Mothma called for it."

Poe groaned. "Fine. I'll take Kira with me, then. She can't do much trouble at a dinner, can she?"

* * *

On this point, however, Poe Dameron was sadly very wrong. The black-tie function was exceedingly boring for a ten-year-old - especially one who was still suffering the lingering effects of emotional trauma and a future that remained far from certain.

At least, that was what Poe secretly hoped was the explanation for Kira's sordid and surly behavior all evening. She clammed up whenever Poe tried introducing her as his niece (which she pretty much was, by all rights). She failed to hide her disdain for the socialites clamoring for the General's attention, and how Poe seemed to pay them more heed than he was paying to her. More than once during the courses of the meal, Kira would dissolve into tears over emotional torment left unexplained but that uneased the rest of the guests. Nothing Poe could say calmed her.

And by the end of the night, Poe was so over it.

If he wasn't so frazzled, he would have passed the girl off to Finn and Jannah for the night, until he remembered that the Calrissians would need these evenings of rest - of which there would be short supply once the baby came. So it was that Poe and Kira dragged themselves into the Damerons' quiet penthouse.

"Bed. Now." Poe clipped shortly and coolly.

"But I'm not even tired," Kira huffed, stomping towards the door that Poe tiredly pointed to, indicating the guestroom.

"Well, I am. Go to bed."

"To think you and Uncle Finn walked out on my mom just to hang around the sorry likes of _that_..."

At least, that was what Poe thought he heard the girl mutter under her breath. "What did you just say?"

Turning to face him, Kira amazingly had the juevos to repeat herself. "To think you and Uncle Finn walked out on my mom just to hang around..."

"We didn't walk out on your mom, ok - she walked out on us!" Poe snapped angrily.

Kira's eyes narrowed as she gawked at him. "Oh, really? Because she said you were self-centered! And selfish! And that everything always had to be about _you_!" she pointed at him. "She said your head was so swollen, she was surprised they found an X-Wing helmet big enough to fit!"

Poe blinked, his face collapsing into hurt. In the brief time they had known each other, he was aware that he and Rey had not often gotten along. Still... "She _said_ that?"

"And more," Kira scowled.

"You know what... it's all coming back to me now... yeah... All the _arguing_! And the _complaining_! And the squabbles over who could fly the _Falcon_ better or look after BB8! And you know what?... You're _just like her_!" Poe gaped at Kira. "You think you're right about... _everything_! Just like her!"

"What else?" Kira sneered.

"You scrunch your nose up when you get mad, and... well, actually, I like that, it's... kinda cute," Poe faltered. In the next second, though, he had recovered quickly. "But it doesn't matter, cause it's just like her!"

"Keep it coming!"

"You fall into all these emotional funks at the weirdest moments - just like her!"

Kira let out a scoffing laugh. "Is that all you got?"

"And then you get inside people's _minds_ and you drive them _crazy_ \- just like her!"

"Well, at least I've _got_ a mind, because if I didn't, I'd be _just_ \- _like_ \- _you_!"

"Well, thank the Force you're not my daughter, then! Because as far as I'm concerned, you could never be _anything_ like me!" Poe screamed.

"Great, because I am already _sick_ of it here! I don't know why Mom ever thought I would be OK here!"

"Well, what do you want from me?" Poe cried.

"GAHHHH!" Kira screamed. For just the briefest instant, the lights flickered in and out, roaring through a power surge. Poe dwelled on it for just a moment, suspecting it was Kira's anger rearing its head through the Force, as the little girl stomped for the guest room.

"Don't turn your back on me, little lady - _tell me what you want_!"

And when Kira spun back to him, Poe didn't see flickers of Rey there. Instead, he saw flickers of a man he had been taught to hate, as well as echoes of the mother of that man - the general and princess he had come to revere and respect. "My _mom_!" Kira whimpered, before fleeing in tears into the guest room and slamming the door behind her.

Poe stared at the shut door for a moment. Then, in a fit of rage, he hurled his blaster into a corner, so hard that it broke. The sound slightly overlapped with that of the front door opening and closing, followed by the clack of heels announcing Zorri's arrival home, from her reconnaissance mission.

"Hey," she said tiredly, kissing Poe squarely on the mouth, and continuing her rambling against his lips in a mumble. "No word on the street about Little Miss Jedi..." She trailed off and drew away, frowning in concern when her husband didn't respond to her kiss the way she thought he would. "What's wrong? What happened?"

Poe sank heavily onto a nearby couch, burying his head in his hands. "I was on Kira Duty tonight. I had to tow her to our black-tie function fundraising for the new Senate. It was awful. She was emotionally all over the place. You just missed our knock-down, drag-out fight."

He waited for Zorri to berate him for losing his temper so easily, to smack him upside the head for being a stubborn, nerfherding idiot. Neither came. Instead, she lay a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Let me talk to her."

Poe glanced up at his wife, shocked. He knew well her aversion to parenting, to ever having children. They had argued over starting a family several times during the course of their marriage. To have Zorri put herself outside her comfort zone for him, especially when he probably - no, _definitely_ \- didn't deserve it meant a lot. He watched in awe, almost transfixed, as Zorri crossed to the guest room door and knocked on it.

"Go away, Uncle Poe!"

"Kira? Honey, it's Auntie Zorri. Can I come in?"

Poe didn't hear Kira's assent. But Zorri must have, for after casting her husband a _Here-It-Goes_ look, she pushed the door in and slipped inside...


	4. Chapter 4: Reach An Agreement

**Chapter 4: Reach an Agreement**

When Zorri entered the guest room, she found it empty. Glancing to her right, she spotted a light going on within the adjacent bathroom, and she followed it. Heels clicking on the tiles, she stopped when she saw Kira climbing into the tub for a warm bubble bath. Sinking beneath the suds, Kira froze when she caught sight of the beautiful bounty hunter.

"I don't need any help," she stated warily.

Zorri threw up her hands in placating surrender. "Not saying you do. Although, I can appreciate a girl drawing her own bath at night. I bathe at night too." She held out that little tidbit as a peace offering, hoping that Kira's ire at Poe would not extend to her by mere association.

Kira's frown softened as she reached for the soap to lather up. "I'm a big girl. I can wash by myself," she repeated. Zorri contented herself with taking a seat on the cool floor of the powder room, watching while also trying not to hover too much. If Kira came to her, she would be there. The little girl might not admit it, but she needed someone to be there for her. Thinking back to her rough childhood on Kijimi, Zorri knew a bit about what that felt like - to need an elder, someone wise and caring, looking out for you.

Zorri's keen instincts were proven well-founded a few moments later, as she pretended not to notice Kira struggling with the shampoo bottle. Letting out a huff of frustration, Kira finally held the bottle out in her aunt's direction.

"Can you please help me wash my hair? Like how Mama does?" She almost whispered it, like she was embarrassed. Zorri tried to put Kira at ease with a smile as she scooted next to the tub. She had to whack the base of the shampoo bottle to get enough out, before moving on to lathering and digging the substance into Kira's scalp with care. Zorri ran her fingers through Kira's long, blonde strands tenderly, admiring how they caught the light.

"You have the most beautiful hair," she confessed. Leaning into her touch, Zorri sensed Kira blush.

"Thank you," she got out meekly. Zorri paused in her scrubbing to fill a small bucket with water and dump it over Kira's head, before breaking in a new shampoo bottle and starting the scrubbing process again.

"A lady should always wash her hair twice." What Zorri didn't say was that she did this to feel extra sexy, as she knew the scent of her own shampoo drove her husband mad.

Kira softly slapped her hand into the bath water, causing a gentle splash. "Mama says my hair is the same color as my great-uncle Luke's."

"Skywalker?"

"Mm-hmm," Kira nodded simply.

Zorri smiled, running her hands through Kira's long tresses as she finished scrubbing. "Well, I think it's lovely." Taking the bucket, she doused Kira again, watching the soapy suds trail down her body. "There. All clean."

Kira stood up in the tub, and Zorri fetched a towel to wrap her in. The bounty hunter wasn't sure what compelled her to do it, but she even scooped the little girl up into her arms and carried her into the guest room and to her bed. She helped Kira get dressed in pajamas - a nightgown of Zorri's that had shrunk in the wash. Zorri had an appreciation for some of the finer things in life, and fashionable nightwear was one of them - once again, another seductive tactic to tease Poe.

Zorri tucked Kira into bed. Before she could stop herself, she kissed the little girl's cheek. "Good night, sweetie."

"Auntie Zorri?"

"Yes, honey?"

"Can you please tell Uncle Poe I'm sorry? For fighting?"

Zorri nodded. "Of course. He's pretty sorry too, you know. Don't worry - I bet you two will make up in the morning." And the bounty hunter quietly closed the door behind her.

* * *

It normally took quite a lot to leave Zorri Bliss Dameron shaken. A bounty hunter was almost required to build up a fearless personality, in her line of work.

And yet now, a mere thirty minutes with a child had filled Zorri with a love and longing that left her absolutely terrified.

Whenever she and Poe had before squabbled about having babies, Zorri had been adamantly opposed to her husband's deep desire to raise a family. And she had had damn good reason, steeped in her own dangerous experiences: babies were something to love only to then become something to lose. She did not see any benefit in creating something which could serve as easy leverage against her by her underworld enemies - of which there were many. Poe's insistences that he had the fighting skills and now the political power to defend their children until his last breath had not dispelled Zorri's fears.

But now, her bonding moment with Kira had managed to take Zorri's whole domestic worldview and turn it completely on its head. She actually felt a simmering jealousy for Rey - something that was relatively easy, as, in the brief time they had been acquainted and associated, neither woman had felt much affinity for each other. Their whole initial meeting on Kijimi could attest to that. At best, Zorri could only feel for Rey a grudging admiration - for her skills as a fighter, and now, her status as a mother.

A status that Zorri suddenly found herself yearning for, and actively considering.

Poe must have noticed a change in her demeanor, even if he couldn't read her tempestuous thoughts, when she appeared in their bedroom, for he was at her side in an instant.

"She's asleep," Zorri murmured quietly. She shivered at Poe gently rubbing his hands along her arms. He peered at her searchingly.

"What is it?" he crooned.

Zorri willed herself to look him in the face. "Do you still want children?"

Poe blinked in surprise at his wife's uncharacteristic willingness to bring up the topic, but then he sank onto their bed heavily. "I thought I did. Now I'm not so sure." He ran a hand over his face. "I think I'd be a rotten father. Kira probably hates me."

"She doesn't," Zorri soothed with a soft smile. "She told me to tell you she's sorry. And you'd better be ready to tell her the same in the morning." Her grin broadened despite the stern admonition.

"What brought this on?" Poe asked. "You asking about having kids, I mean." He dared to hope at the answer to the question, but he still felt the need to inquire.

Zorri fiddled with the purple cape attached to her chrone armor. "I... I think... if you still want us to... get pregnant... I'm willing to try." She glanced to him shyly. Poe seemed to have lost the ability to speak.

Then, he was laughing and whooping and picking her up, spinning her around. Zorri shrieked in delight as she threw her arms about his neck.

"I... I thought this was the reaction people have when they actually _are_ knocked up," she laughed. Poe cut off her chuckle as he cupped her face and passionately crushed her lips against his.

They stood there for many moments, kissing again and again, until Poe began dive-bombing Zorri's neck. Started to slip her cape and armor off in a carnal need to undress her. Zorri's eyes went wide.

"K...Kira..." She gasped, thinking of their surrogate niece in the next room.

"She won't wake up," Poe hissed confidently.

"I don't care - we have to be quiet," she giggled, as the last of her armor fell away and she stood naked before him.

Picking her up by her bum, Poe braced his wife against the wall and brought his straining erection closer to her folds. He was immensely satisfied to find that she was already very wet. At his wife's panting nod, he pushed himself up into her walls and began to thrust, working up a rhythm as Zorri threw her head skyward and arched her back with a moan.

"P...Poe," she gasped, writhing and wriggling against him. "Give me a baby... place your baby inside me..."

"Oh, God..." Poe groaned and he pounded all the harder, spurred on by words he never thought he'd hear his wife say. His body quivered as he drew close, and he growled. "Zorri, I'm..."

She grinned impishly. "Come deep inside me," she whispered.

"Fuck!" Poe grunted, slamming his release deep inside Zorri's walls, his legs turning to jelly as he staggered against her. Somehow, he managed to carry her back to their bed, where Zorri fell asleep straddling him.


	5. Chapter 5: These Secrets That We Keep

**Chapter 5: These Secrets That We Keep**

**FLASHBACK - Eleven Years Earlier**

Rey had vacated and locked her bunk on the Resistance base on Ajan Kloss. She had all that she owned stuffed into a rucksack, slung over her shoulder, and the clothes on her back. Fiddling with the hem of the precious black fabric that now clothed her, she entered the hangar bay in search of Poe and Finn.

She found her pair of best friends together, as she suspected, working on repairing the hyperdrive of a particularly troublesome A-Wing. Poe was halfway under the machine, tinkering with the wiring, while Finn - leaning against the plane - looked on.

Finn lit up when he saw his best friend. "Hey, Rey!" A split second later, he needed to cover his ears as loud white noise blasted their eardrums. It shut off abruptly, and Poe cursed.

"Son-of-a-bitch..." he swore at the defiant A-Wing.

Stooping, Rey called, "Poe, can I talk with you and Finn for a minute?"

"Did somebody call?" Poe's voice was quickly followed by his feet as he tried to back out from under the A-Wing... only to then hit his head on the fuselage. "Ow!"

"Oh!" Rey gasped, both hands going to her mouth. "Oh, I'm sorry..."

"Heh, that's all right," Poe chuckled, rubbing the top of his head and scooting clear of the ship and into the sunlight. He frowned in bemusement as he took Rey in. She was clad in a baggy black sweater that went well past her knees, hanging on her body like a dress. Black drawstring pants were cinched on her bony hips as far as they would go. Her face sported an almost sad smile. "What's with the sleepwear? It's the middle of the day."

"It's not sleepwear," Rey sniffed. "It's my comfort clothes."

"Aren't those kind of like the same thing?" Finn tried pointing out. She ignored him, picking at the hem of Ben's old sweater again nervously. The black garb certainly seemed to live up to its name of comfort clothes, with how jittery Rey was now being.

"I've... I've come to say goodbye," Rey finally got out. The boys stared at her, flummoxed. "I'm going away for a while."

"But you just got back from Tatooine. What's there left to do?" Poe wondered. "Aside from bringing the Jedi back."

"I..." And Rey's vision swam with tears. "I can't tell you that. Force knows I wish I could! I just need to go away for a while." There were a lot of things she needed to do in solitude. Train. Grieve for Ben. And nest for the new life that would soon be upon her... "I'll be taking the _Falcon_; BB8 can stay with you, Poe." She waited for the boys to uproar, protest that the _Falcon_ was their best fighter ship. But apparently that was the least of their concerns.

"You can't just _leave_!" Poe bemoaned. "We _need_ you!" Rey didn't trust herself to reply to that with anything adequate, so she bit her tongue, except to say:

"You two will get on fine..." Wiping tears from her eyes, she turned away and stalked towards Han Solo's old ship. Right away, through the Force, she could feel a certain someone coming after her. She sighed.

"Finny, I... I can't tell... there's nothing further for me to explain..."

"That's a kriffing lie!" Finn caught up with her, spinning her around and giving her a little shake. "What won't I understand? What can't you tell me?"

Rey whimpered, shaking her head to keep further tears at bay. "It's better that you don't know..."

"I'm your best friend! Best friends know everything about each other! You can trust me! Rey..." and here his voice broke. "Please don't leave me. Not again. It was hell without you after Starkiller; it was hell when you ran from Kef Bir and then I thought you were dead."

She gave him a watery smile. "Is that what you're worried about? That you'll never again lay eyes on me?"

"Among other things. I can't lose you, Rey."

"You won't lose me," she shook her head, still smiling bittersweetly. "We'll see each other again. I believe that." And standing up on her tiptoes, she chastely kissed his mouth. Drawing away, she cupped his cheek affectionately. "May the Force be with you, my friend."

**END OF FLASHBACK**

* * *

The Force had been telling him there was so much more than what she was saying, that last day. But Finn had been so new to the Force at the time that he hadn't known how to sense what Rey had been hiding or how to in some other way independently get to the truth.

Ever since, Finn had been replaying that day over and over again in his mind for eleven years, just as he did once more while sitting up in bed, unable to sleep even as his wife dozed and dreamed beside him. His and Rey's final moments together had tormented and haunted him for reasons he had, until recently, been unable to explain. Now, with the arrival of Kira, he understood why.

Rey had to have been pregnant at the time she left him on Ajan Kloss. There was no other explanation. Why else would she wear such loose fitting clothing, if not to hide her pregnancy? That set of black outerwear had mysteriously appeared soon after the end of the war. No mention had been made by Rey of how she had come by the clothing, and the Force was whispering to Finn that that black sweater held more significance than he might ever want to know.

There was a rustling of the sheets and soft purring as Finn felt Jannah stir. Before long, he felt her soft hands working a tender massage into his shoulder blades. He leaned back into her touch with a sigh, allowed her palm to turn his cheek back and lovingly capture his lips with hers. Drawing away, he gazed into her soft brown eyes, framed by a round and strikingly beautiful face. Her belly sat pronounced under the bedclothes, its voluptuousness only adding to her unparalleled beauty.

"What's wrong? Come back to bed," she entreated, winding her fingers through his.

"Can't sleep," he shook his head. "Just thinking."

Jannah dipped her lips into his neck. "About?" she murmured, licking along his pulse point, and Finn shivered in delight.

He sighed and forced it out. "About how it's my job to form a galactic government. My best friend's kid, the descendant of two of the most infamous Sith Lords of all time, is my responsibility. It very well may fall to me to put the entire Jedi Order back together. And... I've been thinking about Rey."

His wife stilled ever so slightly against him at that last admission, but the hesitation that always swirled around speaking of the Jedi was not as cold as it had been in the past. Jannah had been moved by deep maternal instinct when her husband had come to her that evening and explained the situation surrounding Kira, displaying an understanding that left Finn even more hopelessly in love with her.

"Something deep in my bones told me that she was pregnant when she left me that day, and I just couldn't put the clues together. She was pregnant, and probably scared and feeling alone. Why did she run away? Why didn't she come to me? Tell me all of this? We're a family - or, at least, I thought we were."

He felt Jannah bob her head next to him, actively listening. After a moment of silence, she asked:

"Can I ask you something?"

"You can ask me anything," Finn blinked in surprise.

"Did you love her?" Jannah whispered the inquiry, but Finn felt the intense storm of jealousy swirling around his wife in the Force. Jannah Calrissian felt as jealous towards Rey as Rose Tico had been before her. And yet despite this, Finn felt the need to answer honestly.

"I did... once." Jannah blinked in astonishment, obviously not expecting him to display such forthrightness. Finn couldn't help but smirk chidingly. "I thought when we married, we agreed never to lie to each other." He glanced out the window, towards the moon, his voice wistful. "Yes, I did love Rey... yes, I did once have feelings for her. But she never felt the same."

"Did you ever tell her?" Jannah probed, and only the Force helped Finn detect the slight bobble of fear in her voice.

Finn shook his head. "No... because I already knew what her answer would be. She was... never mine to lose. Someone else stole her heart." He huffed out a breath. "In any case, it's just as well. My feelings for her shifted overtime, into something almost brotherly..." He turned back to her with a grin. "And the Force pointed me towards the woman I love."

Jannah beamed at him, blushing. The broad grin not leaving her face, she firmly pushed Finn down into the mattress and swung one leg across his hips to straddle him. Guiding his hands to roam over her body, ghost over her pregnant belly.

"Make love to me, then," she gasped, her eyes rolling shut as she threw her head back. "I need you to fuck me. For the baby." Her urges had emerged hard and fast during this late stage of her pregnancy.

Finn smirked impishly. Flipping Jannah onto her back, the pair laughed as he crawled on top of her. Kissing her deeply, Finn made quick work of his sleep pants and rolled back the hem of Jannah's nightdress, revealing her creamy, chocolate thighs. Her damp folds were soon exposed to the cool night air and he fiendishly buried his head between her spread legs. Fingers disappearing into his long hair, Jannah arched her back with a gasp, her eyes wide and her thighs scrabbling for purchase along the bed as Finn's hands ghosted up towards her hips.

"Mmmmmm... Oh, no..."

"Oh, yes..."

"Oh, Gods, nooooooo..." Jannah wailed.

"Yessss... Yesss..."

"Hmmm... Finn... Finn, please..." Her legs were now trembling violently, her breasts heaving as she started breathing in rough gasps. Finally, her walls clenched around Finn's face and Jannah stiffened. "FINN!" She came hard and long on his mouth, her husband lapping up her juices greedily.

His face emerging from between her thighs, Finn languidly stretched out over his wife with a far-too-smug smirk on his face. Smiling into each other's eyes, he and Jannah kissed lightly, the general caressing his wife's face.

"I love you, Jannah Calrissian."

Jannah beamed lovingly. "I love you too, Trooper," her pet name for him making Finn grin broadly.


	6. Chapter 6: Learn to Love Again

**Chapter 6: Learn to Love Again**

It was several weeks later, and the Calrissians had invited Kira and the Damerons over for supper. Beaumont Kin had also been asked to join them.

Following the meal, the blended family sat around in the sitting room and competed in a game of charades. On bedrest, with the baby due in a matter of weeks, Jannah had wisely chosen to sit this one out, lounging on the couch and blurting out guesses to the silly motions her husband was making alongside Zorri. Poe and Kira, forming another team and having become closer than ever following heartfelt apologies from them both, were laughing at Finn and Zorri's struggles.

"Beaumont, get in here!" Jannah hollered in the direction of the washroom the Force scholar had disappeared to. "You've got the help me guess! We're losing!"

Suddenly, there was a sharp knock at the door. "I'll get it," Finn offered. He got up, crossed to the door and opened it... and after a moment of frozen shock, pulled the new arrival into a fierce hug. His strangled cry made the others glance towards the foyer to see what was the matter.

That is when Kira saw her as her godfather stepped back. "MOMMY!" She leapt from the couch and sprinted into Rey's arms, who was crouching down to welcome Kira into a warm embrace. The Jedi kissed her baby on her cheeks, her lips, her hair, everywhere.

"I _knew_ you'd come back!" Kira cried in relief.

Rey moved into the apartment as the others crowded around, reaching for her and all talking at once. Poe was surprised when Rey actually hugged him.

"Hey, Lady Skywalker," he rumbled. He felt Rey smirk against him before whispering in his ear:

"Whatever things I may have said, know that I am so sorry for them." She must have sensed some of his thoughts regarding what Kira had told him in their fight, surfacing back with her appearance. Leaning back, Rey cupped his cheek. "Thank you. For my daughter."

"Don't be silly," Poe dismissed with a smile.

Then, it was Zorri's turn, the bounty hunter approaching the Jedi awkwardly.

"Hi, you probably don't remember me..."

"Zorri!" Rey laughed, embracing her genuinely. "I trust you're keeping Dameron on his toes... I felt terrible that I couldn't make the wedding..."

Zorri looked flummoxed by Rey's warmth, and it made the older woman think that maybe the Jedi wasn't so bad after all.

Rey now drifted over towards her best friend's wife, gazing at Jannah's pregnant stomach. Jannah just smiled welcomingly.

"You can touch, Jedi girl. It's all right." Rey slowly placed a hand on Jannah's belly, marveling that Finn's child would soon be in the world. "We had always hoped that you would be the godmother..." Still stranded on the sleep couch, Jannah bellowed towards the washroom: "BEAUMONT, COME QUICKLY! IT'S REY!"

"I'm coming..." Beaumont's voice came echoing down the hall, followed by the rest of him. He skidded to a stop, eyes going to the striking woman in front of him. "Rey? Is that really...?"

"Beaumont Kin!" Rey chuckled, pulling him too into a hug. She recalled fondly the Force scholar who had helped her read the Jedi texts following the Battle of Crait.

Beaumont smiled, glancing her up and down. "It's been a while."

"It sure has," Rey grinned back.

"Well..." and Beaumont bashfully rubbed at the back of his neck, feeling quite warm. "You grew up gorgeous."

Rey's eyes widened only the tiniest bit, but then she smiled softly, almost as if she was... pleased. Off to one side, Poe and Finn gaped in shock at the comment that had seemingly come out of nowhere.

"Beaumont Kin knows how to _flirt_?" Poe breathed.

"I now owe you credits," whispered a mortified Finn.

* * *

The whole group spent the night at the Calrissians' place. In the middle of the night, Kira woke up and padded downstairs to get a drink of water. Pausing in the shadows of the landing when she heard voices, she peered around the corner to find her mother and Beaumont sitting on the couch, pouring over the Jedi texts and talking and laughing.

"I forgot how much you know..." Rey was effusive in her compliments. "If Kira is who you believe this prophecy tells about, it will really inform me of how to handle her training when the time comes..."

"When do you think you'll bring the Order back?" Beaumont wanted to know.

"Soon," Rey expressed. "I... I was emotionally fragile... for a long time... missing Kira's father... and raising her... I've needed time to come to terms with who I am. Grieve my husband. Do right by our family. Being in exile on Ahch-To... has given me clarity. I now know what I have to do and have the strength to do it." She didn't notice how Beaumont was glancing sidelong at her, his gaze filled with admiration. She turned to him, her eyes bright with an idea. "Say: I could really use your help with something."

"Anything, Master Jedi," Beaumont offered.

"When I rebuild my Order, it's going to need a Library in the temple. Archives. Beaumont, I want to ask you if you would be the official Archivist and Librarian of the New Jedi Order."

Beaumont looked speechless and delighted. "Me?"

Rey nodded. "No one better."

Beaumont smiled, truly touched. "Thank you," he whispered. Features softening, he reached out a hand and dared to cup Rey's cheek. Her orbs grew big at the intimate gesture, and she sucked in a breath, but she didn't move away. Encouraged, Beaumont leaned in and found Rey's mouth with his. Rey's eyes drifted closed, her head tilting up at the brushing kiss. After a moment, they broke apart with a soft SMACK. Beaumont blushed beet red.

"I'm sorry."

"No... no," Rey smiled gently. "Don't be sorry." Although it had been more than a decade than she had last kissed anyone, on the whole, she had liked it.

Beaumont grinned. "Good. Cause I really don't regret it." And then, taking Rey's face in his hands, he tugged her close and kissed her again, more confidently this time. Eyes fluttering shut, Rey looped her arms lazily about his neck, hands draping down to his shoulders, as she twitched her lips into his to deepen the kiss. Before long, her mouth fell open, pulling his tongue in between the split to play with hers.

Unseen by the adults, Kira let out a gasp at the very grown-up moment she was witnessing. Suddenly, she felt a voice echo in her mind:

_Kira Skywalker Solo?_

She started. _Uncle Finn?_

_Get back to bed, young lady. _Kira had no choice but to obey, and without having ever gotten that drink of water.

Meanwhile, her departure allowed Rey and Beaumont to kiss more passionately in total privacy, until Beaumont's hands ghosted over Rey's hips. Assertively, she pushed him down into the couch cushions as he pulled her onto his lap so that she now straddled his waist. Hands disappearing into his red hair, Rey allowed Beaumont to sultrily undress her. Her fingers drifted down to unclasp his belt buckle and free his throbbing erection.

Slowly, Rey sank down onto Beaumont's member, allowing him to breach her maidenhead and take her virginity proper. Lips peppering his face, she let out a gasp on impact. Bouncing up and down against him, Rey buried her face into his shoulder and neck, so as to conceal her cries and moans as she and her former tutor had sex.

"Uhhhhh... Hmmmm... Mmmm... Uhhhhhhh... Huhhhhhh..."

Rey came hard and long all around him.

* * *

Beaumont and Rey's night of making love soon gradually blossomed into a romantic relationship. Before long, Beaumont shyly asked Rey to marry him. Despite knowing a part of her heart would always belong to Ben, Rey happily said Yes. Kira was thrilled that she would be getting a stepfather.

One year later, Beaumont and Rey stood before a ecstatic congregation on Chandrila, where Mon Mothma married them. On being proclaimed husband and wife, Rey let Beaumont shyly kiss her, to great applause.

At the reception, Finn watched Rey in relief as she and her new husband shared their first dance.

"I'm glad she's found happiness. Landed on her feet."

"She's always been a strong one," Jannah observed cheerfully. In her arms was their new baby, Martha. Several faces down in the crowd, she glanced to see Poe and Zorri Dameron embracing, the General's hands cradling a pronounced baby bump and Zorri glowing as she lightly kissed him with a beaming smile. Their first child would be due in the spring.

Kira now came running up to her godfather and aunt, her hair in curls and carrying her empty Flower Girl basket. "Uncle Finn! Auntie Jannah! They've got a chocolate fountain!"

"No way!" Finn pretended to be gobsmacked.

"Way!" Kira squealed.

Finn laughed. "All right, off with you now. Go dance with your mother." Kira happily scampered away, and he watched as Rey - the blushing bride - giddily set her little girl on her toes and waltzed them around the dance floor.

Finn hadn't expected Rey to ever come back into his life again. But she had, bringing with her a wonderful gift - a godchild whom he loved as much as his own child. Their blended, found family would soon be complete, together at last and forever. All was well.


End file.
